Wake Up Call

[SwanTiger]

I decided to go for a quick ride this afternoon around some of the local country roads with very low traffic volume. As expected, lots of dry corners and the occasional vehicle sensibly travelling to where ever.

After 20 or 30 minutes I start to make my way home, coming down Bawden Road where it intersects with East Coast Road. Wanting to pull out left and head north up East Coast Road I indicate, brake, slow down and stop.

I check both ways and then check again, north bound remains clear however south bound lane has two cars. All is good, my intended path of travel is clear and I begin to pull out slowly and keeping to the left with indicator still blinking and my head light on high beam.

As I begin to make the turn, the car trailing the other pulls out into the north bound lane obviously intending to over take the car in front of it. The driver forgot to indicate, let alone for three seconds before hand, but that is irrelevant considering they've ignored the double yellow lines.

Then we are back to little old me, still crawling out of the corner and beginning to make sense of the situation. I see no way out of the situation, I can't turn anywhere, I can't accelerate or brake to avoid collision - I can't think of anything.

I accept "this is going to hurt", then brake, release the handle bars and lean back thinking the car will clip the front of my bike. I close my eyes too, I couldn't bare to see my beautiful red bike smashed before me.

In those few mili-seconds I wait, I can see the last picture in my mind, the car in front, and the car over taking leanning to right as the car swurves compressing the suspension.

Those rolling grassy green hills, fence line and scattered trees in the distance look pretty too.

I feel the rush of air and hear the screetch of tyres, and still waiting for the "this is going to hurt" feeling to finish sinking through my stomach. As the force of air passes I can hear the road noise from a car that has just passed me. To my relief I open my eyes and I'm still upright, and quickly plant my feet before the bike topples over.

I look south and both cars are still travelling along, the hooligans are now in front of the other vehicle and wave their arms out the window pulling the fingers, along with a quick honk of the horn.

A few seconds later, in comes a distant feeling of anger, I realise what is happening and compose myself. I decide at the very least I want to get their number plate and turn around to give chase.

Within seconds I am racing down East Coast Road and catch up with the hooligans in time to see them pull into a side road. Their irratic driving gets worse and they try to lose me. After a few close calls on their part they slow down and I get close enough to note a few details, specifically the number plate.

The passengers in the back look behind a few times, so I use hand singals to suggest they pull over, but they don't. After 10 minutes we approach another intersection and they again, fail to indicate. They speed off and and wave out the window showing the finger, again. At this point I'm low on Gas and we have entered onto a main road with heavy traffic, I have their number plate and decide to go home.

There are now two lotto tickets sitting in front of me.

It was a surreal feeling coming home and seeing my girl friend and my little girl asleep on the couch. I kiss my little girl on the forehead and she wakes up, gives me a massive grin then blows me a kiss.

What a huge fucken wake up call.

I could happily avoid the guy cutting me off at a round about earlier in the week. All the other cars that pulled out in front of me without indicating I could avoid too. Even the old man who ran a red light and narrowly avoided colliding with me, I could avoid that too.

BUT HEY! its all a part of motorcycling. Shit happens.

Lesson learnt, when pulling out of intersections, pull as hard left as possible, more than you would think necessary, and if practical, avoid pulling out until both lanes are clear.

I'll be down at the post office on Monday...

Anyway, Lotto's on soon.

[bladez]

holy crap sounds like the norm with young pricks who think they can handle everything in there cars untill they hurt or kill someone :nono: good luck with lotto i know what i would have done if it was me a change of gear would have been high up on my list any way its a shame wankers like that put our acc lev up by hitting us all the time :yes:

[Maha]

Lotto numbers sucked tonight Swanny, ya done good to follow those fucktards, hate that sort of shit, great write up mate, really puts ya in the picture of what happened and how easy it can happen.....:brick:

[Skyryder]

What is the point in starting a thread like this based on such a pointless topic.

Skyryder

[RantyDave]

After all that grief the least you can do is post the rego, and even better make, model and colour of the car.

It's obviously been a day for it too. I trundled home very gently this evening, pitch black, standing water everywhere, windy as all hell. Just as I turned onto Moa Point (a strip of Wellington that looks like coastal south island) and started riding into the complete darkness I heard a loud thrasing "BLAAAAAAAA" and was surprised to see a silver XR6 (or similar) pass me and blast off into the darkness. Fucking psycho. No time to get rego, couldn't have seen it anyway and sure as shit wasn't chasing the fucker. Just glad he saw me, really.

BTW, just re-read your post. Well done man. A lesser rider would have been smeared across some rice racers' bonnet. A remarkable piece of keeping it together.

Dave

[RantyDave]

What is the point in starting a thread like this based on such a pointless topic.
Ummm, sorry, I really don't see the problem with it. It's not like KB is famed for intelligent debate on topics of relevance to the greater world stage, is it? Besides, it makes a nice change to hear of someone *not* getting squashed. Shit, today it's made a nice change to see someone who can spell and use grammar.

Don't get it. Maybe it should have been in "rant and rave" but what exactly is the problem?

Dave

[98tls]

:yes: good read..glad you kept upright ok...reminds me of flying up a cutting on the pig root at 190ish clicks and seeing to small white goats flying down the side of said cutting....i am hitting the picks thinking fark this is going to hurt......the little basterds came out to the center of the road and then veered back off up the cutting thank god....:doobey:

[myvice]

Yeee... Lucky you weren’t in a car!
Would have had no hope of missing you then!

[SwanTiger]

:bye: Bye-Bye ZX14, Lotto no good.

I am not going to post any details of the vehicle, it was probably stolen anyway. Just a car load of your typical delinquints who can't afford to dress properly and have never heard of a belt.

I'm young too, I like to go fast, but I do my best to be concious about other road users and the impact of my actions on their family, should the worst scenario occur.

My reason for posting that was to demonstrate just how innocently and easily things can turn to custard.

I wasn't speeding, I wasn't being wreckless, I did everything according to the law (apart from the lack of L plate, but sshhh) and still - I had a close call.

Not trying to be negative either, I see more positives from this, I got to see my little girl again, I had my favorite food, beef chow mein for dinner, I learnt another invaluable piece of wisdom and still have clean undies !!


Ummm, sorry, I really don't see the problem with it. It's not like KB is famed for intelligent debate on topics of relevance to the greater world stage, is it? Besides, it makes a nice change to hear of someone *not* getting squashed. Shit, today it's made a nice change to see someone who can spell and use grammar.

Don't get it. Maybe it should have been in "rant and rave" but what exactly is the problem?

Dave

Dave, ignore him, I red repped him for a post he made last night, the religious one, I expressed that I thought it was pointless crap and he was only doing it to shit stir, which he admitted to in PM. So he PM'd me and decided to have a tantrum and protest my expression of opinion using the rep system.

I guess he has decided to make it personal and is drooling at the mouth with any opportunity to attack me.

I don't mind, I have better and bigger things to worry about other than someone disagreeing with my disagreement of their actions.

[Virago]

What is the point in starting a thread like this based on such a pointless topic.

Skyryder
You're not having a bad day by any chance, Skyryder?:blip:

[Maha]

Dave, ignore him, I red repped him for a post he made last night,.

So you slapped Skyrider.....:nya:
He must have read your post to remark on it like he did, so it didnt go to waste......

[RantyDave]

Dave, ignore him, I red repped him for a post he made last night, the religious one
Ah, religion and red rep in one sentence. Should've done politics too and gone for the trifecta :)

Dave

[imdying]

What is the point in starting a thread like this based on such a pointless topic.

Skyryder
Who is the bigger fuckwit, someone who (arguably) starts a pointless thread, or the person who quotes the entire message to add a fucking pointless single line comment to bitch about it?

/edit: Oh yeah, in case you're as stupid as you make out, it's you ;)

[bladez]

Who is the bigger fuckwit, someone who (arguably) starts a single line comment to bitch about it? hmmm is this multy choice give me 5 while i work it out :rofl: :rofl:

[imdying]

I wasn't speeding, I wasn't being wreckless, I did everything according to the law (apart from the lack of L plate, but sshhh) and still - I had a close call.For me, that's the rub. I've been driving along fine and twice now had my cars written off, one red light runner, one rear end in a stationary line of traffic. I pray that that nevers happens on the bike, but we're playing the odds aren't we. :rockon:

[beyond]

Hiya Swanny,

Good to hear you got out of that one mate :)

Sounds like a very close call indeed.

Not being picky here or anything but if it happens again, don't close your eyes and expect the worst okay? You are way better to steer the bike off road than have a head on. Chances of survival are far greater if you hit something around 50kmh than having a head on with looneys doing 50kmh plus. If they are doing the speed limit (which it sounds like they weren't) it's still a 100kmh speed crash in the end. Head ons are to be avoided at all costs.

I came around a corner on a recent Coro loop a a couple months back between Whitianga and Tairua in the twisties. Was going pretty quick and as I come around the bend onto the short straight, a white commodore V8 full of nutters is overtaking three cars on my side of the road doing easily around 130kmh towards the blind corner I just came around. It's not known for wide
roads around there but if we had ended up in a head on, combines speed would have been around250kmh. Reckon the 1400 would have made a fair dent.

Without really thinking I just whacked the left bar forward which shot me left near the gravel, set up a bit of a head shake, whacked the right bar before hitting the gravel and managed to swerve around the holden. IMHO it was a life saving move. The same idiots nearly took a few of the other guys out on their bikes further back.

Some right Neanderthals out there alright. Blame it all on "P" I reckon.

[Maha]

Who is the bigger fuckwit, someone who (arguably) starts a pointless thread, or the person who quotes the entire message to add a fucking pointless single line comment to bitch about it?

/edit: Oh yeah, in case you're as stupid as you make out, it's you ;)
Fuck thats a great post dude.............:killingme :killingme

[SwanTiger]

Not being picky here or anything but if it happens again, don't close your eyes and expect the worst okay? You are way better to steer the bike off road than have a head on. Chances of survival are far greater if you hit something around 50kmh than having a head on with looneys doing 50kmh plus. If they are doing the speed limit (which it sounds like they weren't) it's still a 100kmh speed crash in the end. Head ons are to be avoided at all costs.

I agree with your thinking and have used it to get myself out of several situations such as the one you described in the Coromandel.

However in this instance I was stumped and have resigned to the fact there was no realistic counter re-action given the short space of time and my position on the road, and the turning radius of a sports bike at slow speeds.

I think the only way is to avoid it in the first place by pulling more than usually necessary to the left or waiting for both lanes to clear.

Food for thought anyway. My goal is to live and ride long enough to pillion my little girl or watch as she passes me on one wheel :innocent:

She can't crawl or walk yet, but she can balance herself on a bike seat :blip: looking promising so far.

Anyone else got suggestions on what you would've done?

[RantyDave]

However in this instance I was stumped and have resigned to the fact there was no realistic counter re-action given the short space of time and my position on the road...

Anyone else got suggestions on what you would've done?
Press the triangle button in the middle, quit the race and try again.

Oh, hang on.

Dave

[beyond]

Press the triangle button in the middle, quit the race and try again.

Oh, hang on.

Dave

Now wouldn't that be real nice if every bike came with that triangle button in the middle so we could just redo that part again. Be real handy for tickets too eh? :)

[beyond]

Anyone else got suggestions on what you would've done?

Last resort and if all options are kaput, push up hard with your legs, let them have your bike cos it's going to stop them one way or the other, tuck as you hit the bonnet and/or windscreen, if you don't visit them in the front seat, roll over the roof and land on your feet behind the car, run around to the drivers side as he aint going anywhere with your bike wedged in his radiator, pull the bugger from the car and head butt him with your helmet. That should do for starters eh? :)

Being facetious of course, BUT, in a no way out head on, if you have time, jump high and hard. It's still going to hurt but survival chances are higher.
Oh, that's for a car and not a high van or truck that you will have no way clearing anyway. :(

[Clivoris]

Grand escape man.:first: May you have many more.

[Skyryder]

Ummm, sorry, I really don't see the problem with it. It's not like KB is famed for intelligent debate on topics of relevance to the greater world stage, is it? Besides, it makes a nice change to hear of someone *not* getting squashed. Shit, today it's made a nice change to see someone who can spell and use grammar.

Don't get it. Maybe it should have been in "rant and rave" but what exactly is the problem?

Dave

My comments were taken from the Red rep dialog box that Swanny sent me about a thread that I started a few days ago. He was unwilling to debate his comments out in the open forum. That's the difference between Swanny and myself. I don't have to hide behind the red rep dialog box. What you see is what you get.

But having said that out on the road Swanny's my best friend as indeed are all kiwibikers. Maybe some of you who slagged me need to be more aware than you appear to be.

Skyryder

Skyryder

[Indiana_Jones]

Shit, close call man. I think we should shit on those guys. Don't waste our time getting the cops involved

-Indy

[HONKEEE]

should of done a wheelie into the car. would of killed them as well

[Edbear]

Now wouldn't that be real nice if every bike came with that triangle button in the middle so we could just redo that part again. Be real handy for tickets too eh? :)




Not to mention a lot of other situations...:wait:

[Edbear]

Ps. Glad you're okay, mate. Not a nice place to be!

[imdying]

My comments were taken from the Red rep dialog box that Swanny sent me about a thread that I started a few days ago. He was unwilling to debate his comments out in the open forum. That's the difference between Swanny and myself. I don't have to hide behind the red rep dialog box. What you see is what you get.And yet you couldn't leave it alone, stop being a pissy bitch.

[Skyryder]

And yet you couldn't leave it alone, stop being a pissy bitch.

Yea yea

Skyryder

[Mr. Peanut]

Now now, there's enough green rep for both of you :yes:

[Skyryder]

Now now, there's enough green rep for both of you :yes:

A true peacemaker.:first:

Skyryder